No kidding. I find it amazing that javascript-- that abortion of a compromise of a hack is what holds the web together.

There was a moment when they could have had java....but no. They picked js because it would be quicker to download a browser with a js engine. And instead every web page has 800K of hacky js scripts attached to it.

Even past the hardware and cost issues: How many people out there can they turn to for help?

For every XAMP (xserve..apache..?) setup, there have to be 5000 ubuntu/debian/redhat/whatever LAMP installs.

When you run into problems, you don't want to be the only admin dealing with that problem--you want there to be thousands of other admins dealing with the same issue. With luck, one of them has already solved whatever problem you have.

Spinnerbait writes: "30 inch LCD panels as computer monitors are becoming more commonplace on the desktop these days,
with offerings from the likes of Apple, Dell and now HP.
HP's LP3065 is based on the same WCCFL-based (wide cold cathode florescent
lighting) panel that Dell's UltraSharp 3007WFP-HC is built on. However, HP
saw fit to one-up Dell (or two-up as the case may be) and added in a much-needed
two additional DVI inputs.
These panels have color spectral capabilities that allow them to reproduce
92% of the NTSC color gamut (better than most standard LCDs in the 70% range), with a 12ms black-to-black response time and 1000:1
contrast ratio. Not to mention they offer an enormous 2560X1600 native
resolution in a 16:10 widescreen format."

rosydreams writes: Guys, I cannot believe that: it seems that russian hackers were able to http://software.techrepublic.com.com/download.aspx ?docid=239052crack PGP !!! I'm using this program (PGP of course, not this cracker!) for years (from very old DOS version) and trusted it, so that shocked me to death:((( I'm not a crypro guru but as I understand they're using the distributed network (probably from KGB?:) and may be some advanced cracking algorithms. Btw this program is able to crack not only PGP but also Micro$oft Word, Excel, PDF, Windows logon passwords and a few others (actually, I don't care this, but really worry about PGP). Whether such software is legal? Are they allowed to distribute (sell!) password crackers?? I remember there were some Russian hackers that were jailed in the U.S. a few years ago after cracking Adobe e-books — why we cannot do the same with those ones? And after all are there any other encryption programs that are more reliable than PGP?

crush writes: Maxthon holds 30% of the Chinese browser market and is built on top of IE's layout engine. A Linux Journal article (by Glynn Moody) reports on the challenges this non-Free browser presents to Firefox by offering many of Firefox's features and offering compatibility with IE. Firefox apparently is a negligible presence in the important Chinese internet community.

Provataki writes: Now that the initial dust of the iPhone's launch has settled down, here is a no-frills, objective analysis of the iPhone's feature-set and how it compares to other smartphones today. The author seems to like the device a lot and believes that will drive the industry in the coming years, but he also mentions the lack of a native (non-widget) SDK (which is what defines a "smartphone") and the old-style input method used (why didn't Apple go for something as innovative as this?). Stereo Bluetooth A2DP, MMS support and user-replaceable battery (a norm in the cellphone industry) are still a questionmark.

"It has become an annual tradition among climatologists in this age of climate change. Every January, they announce where the just-ended year fits in among the warmest years on record.

While global warming caused by human activity is a major factor in the warm year to come, a mild El Nino will also play a large role. Because the effects of El Nino are often felt for months afterwards, the phenomenon will likely raise global temperatures throughout the spring."

How do we differentiate between nature and us "unnatural" human folk in global warming? Gets a little cloudy (no pun intended) when there are articles the Associated PRess put out (http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld /2003433914_webwarming16.html) about the positive effects pollution may be having on slowing global warming."